Citation Nr: 0408819
Decision Date: 04/05/04 Archive Date: 04/16/04
DOCKET NO. 98-14 106A ) DATE
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On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Cleveland,
Ohio
THE ISSUE
Entitlement to service connection for hepatitis C.
REPRESENTATION
Appellant represented by: Disabled American Veterans
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD
E. Ward, Associate Counsel
INTRODUCTION
The appellant had active service from June 1974 to June 1976.
This matter came before the Board of Veterans' Appeals
(Board) on appeal of a July 1998 rating decision of the
Cleveland, Ohio, Regional Office (RO) of the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA).
The case was twice remanded in February 2000 and August 2001
for further development.
REMAND
A report of contact indicates that the veteran contacted the
RO in January 2002 and requested that his hearing on appeal
be rescheduled. In a May 2002 letter to the veteran, the RO
requested clarification from the veteran concerning the type
of hearing desired and indicated that it would schedule him
for the previously requested hearing before a member of the
Board at the RO if he did not respond to the letter within 60
days. The record does not reflect that the veteran responded
to this letter or that the veteran was scheduled for a Board
hearing at the RO.
In light of these circumstances, this appeal is REMANDED to
the RO for the following:
The RO should schedule the veteran for a
Board hearing at the RO, in accordance
with the docket number of this appeal.
Thereafter, the case should be returned to the Board in
accordance with proper appellate procedures. No action is
required of the appellant until he is otherwise
(CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE)
notified by the RO but he has the right to submit additional
evidence and argument on the matter the Board has remanded to
the RO. See Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999).
____________________________________________
Shane A. Durkin
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans' Appeals
Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the
Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the
nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a
decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal.
38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2003).